For me the first days in Sri Lanka have been wonderful. After a little stress at immigration where the immigration officials were curious as to why a young Kenyan girl wanted to be in Sri Lanka for so long, they thankfully let me in! Arriving by myself in a new country was quite daunting, but the flights all worked out fine and I was picked up at the airport by a taxi driver and driven to the hostel. Dan arrived in the late afternoon the following day.
Some observations so far from Sri Lankan culture that are very new to me:
- Rice and Curry for breakfast! Particularly Kiribath (rice cooked in milk) which is really tasty but very different from Kenyan food. Especially as breakfast for me is normally milk/tea and bread
- I have more attention on me! Now I can understand what is was like for Dan in Kenya! Maybe Sri Lankan people don't often see people like me on the street! Nonetheless they have all been very friendly and welcoming to me.
- Women riding motorbikes/scooters. This is not very common in Kenya!
- I rode on an elephant!!
After Dan arrived we left Negombo for a few nights in the jungle. Peace and quiet was so nice. Visiting Dambulla Temple and Elephant safari too, amazing experiences understanding Sri Lankan culture.
I now write from Trincomalee on the East Coast of Sri Lanka, where we have just returned from snorkelling on Pigeon Island, seeing lots of tropical fish.
I'm having a wonderful time so far and excited to get to Batticaloa to start working with Ocean Stars.
Here are some pictures of the first few days below:
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| Feeding the elephant some pumpkin |
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| Amazing to see wild elephants |
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| Dambulla Temple |
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| Chilling in the middle of the jungle. No one in sight. |
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| Pigeon Island, clear water. |
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